DT cuts rural broadband investment by USD100 million

German telecoms giant Deutsche Telekom (DT) is to cut investment to provide broadband internet services in rural areas of Germany due to recent regulatory decisions on charges, the company’s CFO Timotheus Hoettges said at a telecoms conference in Duesseldorf. He added that the country’s incumbent telco will invest EUR100 million (USD138.7 million) less than the EUR300 million previously planned in rural broadband infrastructure, following the Federal Network Agency’s (FNA’s) decision to lower the price DT can charge competitors for access to the last-mile connecting households and businesses to the local telephone exchange. According to CommsUpdate, the regulator lowered the last-mile fee, which is reviewed every two years, by 2.9% from EUR10.50 to EUR10.20. DT criticised the ruling, stating that it has left it no foundation to invest in the expansion of its services to rural areas, and warning that ‘urgently needed funds for investments in broadband expansion will be abolished.’ The incumbent had wanted to increase the access price for its eight million unbundled connections to its local loop to EUR12.90.